If Morning Can't Wait
by LivenotMerelysurvive
Summary: Sequel to Breathe Again. Kurt is home for summer break after his Freshman year of college and fresh off his break up with Blaine. He's ready to work through his problems alone, but maybe he won't have to. Rated for eventual Kurtofsky lovin'.
1. Chapter 1

So, "fucking sucked" was an understatement for my current predicament. I didn't want to talk to anyone. I didn't want to go anywhere. I missed Blaine so much that it physically hurt. I knew this wouldn't be easy, but I wasn't prepared for the withdrawal. I was quitting my drug of choice cold turkey and it made me even bitchier than usual.

Blaine's kisses haunted me. The ghost of his lips moving softly against mine tortured me on a daily basis. And, Gaga, did I miss his hands. The way they felt on the small of my back. The calloused finger tips that made me shiver when they ran down my thighs.

I had to snap out of it. I chose this. I _had_ to do this.

To top it all off, I was back in good old Lima, Ohio. My room was exactly as I left it and there were far too many reminders of my first love. I'd been doing so well the last few weeks of school, barely crying, and I had actually been sleeping. Now though, looking at all the pictures and finding all the old songs we'd written together.

It fucking hurt.

...

I don't know how I made it through the first week of Summer Break. My father's brow was permanently bowed in worry and Carol looked completely lost. I barely ate, I never sang, and I wore sweat pants. _Sweat Pants!_

So, needless to say their worries weren't completely unfounded. I was a wreck, but I had to grieve. I had to mourn the loss of a dream. I realize now that's what it had become.

I spent so much time filling in the gaps of our relationship and justifying the missing pieces I couldn't ignore, that I lost sight of myself and what I needed. After that miserable week in bed, I came out a stronger person. I was honest with myself about what I couldn't compromise on ever again and really came to terms with the fact that I was going to be lonely for a good long while. And I was almost okay with it all.

I just had to stop missing my best friend.

..0.0.0.

My Dad and I often worked the morning shift at the garage together during the summer so that we could have the nights off for "family bonding". It was during one of those shifts that Burt Hummel finally caved.

"Kurt, are you- do you need… help?" My dad asked me as I handed him a socket wrench, catching me completely off guard. I looked down at the soiled cement and closed my eyes. This conversation was inevitable, but it was still going to be completely uncomfortable.

"Er, like do you need to talk to someone, professionally? I just- I don't know what else to do. Carol and I have really tried to get through to you, but you just push us away. You live in your head so much these days and it worries me, kiddo." He put the socket wrench down and gave me his undivided attention when I ran my fingers through my hair (a sure sign of my mental state) and leaned against the car.

"It's just really hard. I mean, I knew it wouldn't be easy and I don't regret anything, but I miss him so much. I don't-" I had to stop myself because if I said one more word I was going to break down in front of the other two mechanics on duty and that was not something I was willing to do.

Without a word, my dad secured the car we had been working on and ushered me in to his office. He closed the blinds and poured me a cup of coffee, two sugars and a splash of milk, just the way I like it. After he handed me the mug, he motioned to the two seats in front of his desk and waited patiently while I figured out exactly how I was going to have this conversation.

"I know that you took what I said to heart, Kurt. It's obvious to me that you and Blaine, um, _connected_ the way I always hoped you would with somebody and I can't tell you how happy that makes me. I also know that you are so much like your mother." He took my hand, an unusual gesture, when he said those words and I knew he really did understand what I was going through.

"She loved with everything she had and you've definitely inherited that. Sometimes, the intensity of what she felt was overwhelming. I can't tell you how many times I watched her cry. It wasn't always over something I'd done, or not done, but either way it made me a better person." I could see his eyes get a little glassy as he squeezed my hand a bit tighter.

"Dad-" He put up his other hand to signal that he wasn't finished.

"She is the reason I'm the father I am and the husband I am. She's the reason I'm _here_." I couldn't help but notice how tired he looked as he pulled his hand away from mine.

"As much as I liked Blaine and really appreciated everything he did for you, a part of me knew that he was too," He paused for a moment, trying to choose his words carefully.

"confined to fully appreciate your... fire. I knew you'd try your damndest and put everything you had in to making it right, but I always had an inkling that he wouldn't be able to make you happy." There was a long moment of silence while I took it all in.

My dad was fucking incredible.

"I don't know what to say. That- well, that's frighteningly accurate. You're right. I think he needs someone a little less complicated and probably a bit more, um, stable?" I floundered a bit searching for the word.

"Bottom line is, well, sex complicates everything." The moment I said it, I second guessed whether or not my dad was capable of living through this conversation, but then I remembered my "sex talk" and knew we'd get through it together. He still looked a little pale though.

"I could never regret anything about Blaine or our relationship, but there was no fire. No spark. I loved him with everything I had, and if he had returned my feelings with the same sentiment, it might have worked, but he just had no idea how to handle me. It was always there in the back of my mind; from the way he first told me he loved me, to how we ended up living together. It never felt like he thought about how I might want things. I knew romance wasn't his expertise from the beginning, but I never thought he could make me feel… convenient."

I was about to continue when there was a knock at the door. My dad got up to answer it and nothing could have prepared me for who was behind it.

**A/N:** So, I really went back and forth on this. I couldn't decide if I wanted Furt or Kurtofsky. In the end, the wonderful writers on this site made up my mind for me. I was inspired by so many stories, most of which I've reviewed, so thanks for the push guys. This was going to be entitled "One and Only", but Adele's awesomeness is contagious and there's already a WIP Kurtofsky with that title, so "If Morning Can't Wait" is a wonderful song off of Matt Doyle's new EP. Its available on Itunes and its incredible.

Also, don't own anything : (


	2. Chapter 2

"_I want to dream again, cause you'll only love me at night. Take me away like you do in my mind. I can't face the day after you leave me behind. If you'll never stay, how can this love be defined? If morning can't wait will the daylight be kind?"- If Morning Can't Wait (Matt Doyle)_

.0.0.0

I can still remember that day vividly. It was the closest I ever came to telling Kurt Hummel how I felt. What he made me feel. It was a simple enough sentence, veiled in shallow circumstance, but inwardly I had hoped he understood.

"_Remember, you'll wait for me here, right?"_

To this day, years later, I can still see the unshed tears in his eyes and the sheer compassion written all over his face. I didn't deserve anything from him much less his forgiveness. I was grateful to have it, for sure, but I could never accept it fully when I couldn't forgive myself. How could I ever forgive myself for hurting him? For making him leave his friends?

I dream about a lot of things, usually school and hockey, but sometimes I dream about him. I always wake up with a smile on my face, no matter how tame or unfulfilling the dreams are. Just the thought of waking up with him in my arms simultaneously ruins and makes my day.

Is it sad that my lips still tingle at the mere thought of our, decidedly disturbing, but still world altering kiss? Yeah, it is. I know.

The thing is, Kurt Hummel is, to this day, the most beautiful thing I've ever seen. Looks are great and all, but when I say this boy is beautiful, I don't just mean physically. I mean inside he shines so bright that outwardly he's a supernova. I'm not saying he doesn't have his faults, everyone does, but they get lost in the awesomeness so easily.

I've found myself doing so many things in the last three years that I told myself I never would; that I never thought I could and he's such a huge part of that, but I have no idea how to tell him.

The day I came out, Freshman year of college, I wanted so badly for him to see it. I wanted him to be there and know that he was the only reason I could ever be that strong. I thought about calling him so many times. I'm not above Facebook stalking, especially when it comes to him, so I had his number, but what would I say to him?

'I know I made your life a living hell and threatened to kill you, but thanks for making me see who I am?'

Bottom line is, no matter what I say to him, it won't ever be enough.

I know he doesn't hate me, but he can't particularly like me either. No matter how wonderful and forgiving he may be, there's no way my feelings for him will ever be welcome.

.0.0.0

The day I came home from school, I had my first face-to-face talk with my dad as an openly gay son. He'd accepted me over the phone and told me I was more than welcome home whenever I needed. All in all, it had gone extremely well, but I was still worried that things would be different for us. What if he didn't want to watch the game with me anymore? What if he treated me with indifference?

Of course, those fears had been stupid. My dad hugged me just the same, if not a bit tighter, and welcomed me home. Our first dinner together was a little awkward because neither of us really knew where to start or what to say, but he eventually broke the silence.

"I- I'm so proud of you, Dave. You've grown into a good man and I know it hasn't always been easy. I wanted to reiterate what I said to you on the phone. You, um, being who you are, that doesn't change anything, okay? It doesn't make you any less a man and it doesn't make you any less my son. Do you understand?" I put my fork down and nodded, trying to find a way to tell him how much that meant to me. He doesn't know the whole story yet and I haven't decided how much I'm going to tell him, but I feel like he deserves to know some of it.

"That means so much to me, Dad, it really does. I know I haven't always made it easy for you either. I know it was touch and go there for a while, but there's so much about that time that I couldn't tell you. I was so scared for a really long time. I didn't know if I'd ever be strong enough to be happy." I paused to take a sip of water and gather my thoughts. I was also a little shaken by just how true that last statement was.

"Not having the pressure of high school made coming out a lot easier, but I couldn't have done any of it, hell I wouldn't have made it through senior year without Kurt Hummel." My dad's eyes grew wide, but still a little knowing and he gestured for me to go on.

"Obviously, I stopped bullying him after Junior Prom. It's really ironic, looking back, that they made us Prom King and Queen, but that night was a turning point for me. He asked me to come out. He was the _only_ person in the world who knew who I was. At first, I couldn't handle how he made me feel. I was so angry with him for flaunting what I could never have, what I thought I could never be." I looked down then. I hadn't intended to share that part with him just yet.

"Ever since you came out, I wondered what really happened with Kurt. I'm going to be honest. Ever since you told me, I've been talking to Burt. He's been incredibly helpful and he's told me a few things from Kurt's point of view that made me wonder. There are still a lot of things I don't know and questions that I have, but I know you'll tell me in your own time. I don't want you to feel like you owe me any kind of explanation. I'm just glad that you finally feel like you have a chance to be happy." At that, he got up and started to clear the table, moving around our small dining room.

"I want to tell you, Dad. You've been amazing with me through all this. It- it makes me wish Mom was still with us. She'd be so proud of you." He stopped stacking plates then and pulled me into a hug. I smiled into his shoulder and tried not to take the moment for granted. It was rare for my dad to be outwardly affectionate.

"Thank you, son, you don't know how much it means to hear you say that." We separated and he went back to the dishes. I helped him clean up a bit more in comfortable silence.

"So, I know you're looking for a job this summer. Cornell's scholarship is wonderful and you know how proud I am that you're supporting yourself through school, so I thought I'd give you a push. Burt offered to let you help around his shop for the summer; just running errands and cleaning, few quick oil changes. How does that sound?" My brain stopped.

Burt Hummel had offered me a job. I would most certainly see Kurt if I accepted.

Could I handle that? Again, the fear of rejection hung over me. Even though I'm out and proud at school, I don't really have time to date. Between hockey and homework, I barely have time to sleep. Even if I did have time, it wouldn't be fair to put someone in that situation. I have to get over Kurt Hummel before I can put myself out there.

The problem was, as time went on, it looked less and less likely that it would ever happen.

Maybe this job would give me the push I needed to finally find some closure. If I could find the balls to talk to Kurt at all, then I would tell him how much, even inadvertently, he's helped me. I could do this. Really.

"Son, you alright?" My dad asked. It looked like he had tried to get my attention and failed a few times.

"Yeah, sorry, spaced out. That would be awesome. I'll go over there tomorrow and figure out a schedule. I can't believe he's willing to help me. I mean, I know that he raised Kurt and, of course Kurt's amazing, but I really don't deserve this from him." I saw the corners of my dad's lips lift just slightly as he dried the last of the dishes.

"Well, I think it's obvious that you've made some big changes since you wronged his family. Burt's a naturally forgiving guy and I might have spent some time bragging while we watched the game a few times." He smiled fully then and ran me out of the kitchen so I could turn on the Red Wings game.

As I got comfortable in my regular spot on the couch, I thought about what it would be like to actually see Kurt. It had officially been a year since graduation and even longer since we'd properly spoken. I'd been living off my vivid imagination for so long, it would be strange to be face to face with the boy of my dreams again.

I can do this…

**A/N:** Oh my god, guys. You're all awesome! Thanks to those who reviewed and put this on their alerts : ) So, I think I caught everything, but the tense got a way from me a few times, so if you notice anything that's awkward please let me know. I never intended Dave to be such a huge presence in this story. It was meant to be Kurt's journey with Dave helping him. Now it will be about how they help each other and I couldn't be happier.

Still no ownership... pity. Max Adler is yummy ; )


	3. Chapter 3

"_Heat of your palm across my face, you're so damn sincere. But you lose your calm at our embrace. You pale when I'm near cause given an inch, I'll take the mile. I'd rather impose. Watching you cringe, I'll wait the while until my eyes close."- If Morning Can't Wait (Matt Doyle)_

The door opened and in walked David Karofsky. He looked a bit thinner, but certainly happier than I had ever seen him. As my dad shook his hand and asked him to sit, I wondered what the hell he was doing here, in my dad's office. That's when I realized that they were talking and maybe if I actually listened, instead of ogling David's broad shoulders, I might get some answers.

"Um, hi, Kurt." He said shyly. I thought I saw his right hand twitch, like he stopped himself from waving at the last second and I couldn't help but smile.

"Hello, David." I answered politely. We looked at each other for a few long seconds, both trying to figure out where we stood. I didn't think we were enemies anymore. His silent indifference our Senior year was the only concession I needed from him. I'd forgiven him long ago, but that still left us in a bit of an awkward position.

"Kurt, I hope you don't mind. I told Paul that David, here, could help us around the shop this summer. I tried telling you a few times, but you were already-" I shot my dad a warning glare and he stopped abruptly.

"Its fine, Dad. I'm sure David and I can learn to be, at the very least, amicable." It was almost a question. I had no idea whether David would even want to speak to me. Come to think of it, I hadn't heard anything about him since he was awarded a full ride at Cornell.

"I'm okay with it, as long as you are, Kurt. I wouldn't want you to be uncomfortable." David said quietly.

Ever since Junior Prom I'd thought of David Karofsky as a victim of society, but this boy sitting across from me didn't fit that bill. He was quiet yes, but confident and he had a positivity about him that I never would have associated with the David that I knew. Maybe it was time I reevaluated my knowledge of who David Karofsky was.

"I wouldn't be uncomfortable, but could you give us a minute, Dad? I just want to catch up with David. I'll be right out to help you with the Impala." I internally begged my dad not to ask any questions.

"Sure, Kurt. Actually, could you give him a bit of a tour when you're done? Just show him the basics and then we'll talk about your schedule after, okay David?" David nodded and my dad shut the door behind him.

"Are you sure that it's okay that I'm here? I don't want to intrude." I turned to look at him properly again and saw that he was extremely uncomfortable.

"You were worried about my comfort, but what about you? Can you be around me the whole summer? I don't want this to be awkward, but I'm not going to deprive you of a job either." His hands were clenched tightly in his lap and I wondered when the hell my day got so complicated.

"I'd really like for us to try to be friends. I know that's asking a lot of you, but there are a lot of things I want to tell you." I could tell he stopped himself then. What could he possibly have to say to me? I thought we'd aired out all of our larger issues already. Looking in his eyes though, which he finally let me meet, I knew there was more to it than I had thought.

"I guess we can try." A genuine smile crossed his face at that and I couldn't remember ever seeing him wear one before.

"You look happy, David. I hope that's the case." And I really did. No matter what he'd done to me, I truly believed he deserved to be happy.

"I-I'm getting there." He said, nodding his head.

"I came out." He damn near whispered. My head shot up and I couldn't help but smile. He looked so proud, but still a little scared. I hoped he wasn't scared of me.

"That's wonderful, David." I couldn't stop myself from placing my hand on his forearm. Damn, where did my self control go?

"Did it go well? I mean, is everything okay?" I didn't want to pry too much, but I would be lying if I said I wasn't insanely curious. I drew my hand back a bit and waited for a reply.

"Much better than I expected. Dad was great. He said that your dad's been a huge help to him, so it makes sense that he's taken everything so well. I always admired how understanding your dad was when we were in school." My dad knew about all this and didn't tell me. Why would-. I stopped that line of thought immediately. I've been in "Blaineville" ever since I got back, so I can't blame him for not being able to get through to me.

"Yeah, he's the best." I said weakly. My mind was racing though. I was having a serious problem reconciling the well adjusted, polite boy in front of me with the troubled one I had expected.

"Well, let me show you around a bit. We try to keep things pretty simple here." I opened the door and motioned for him to follow me out.

.0

Holy shit. Holy shit. Holy shit.

He touched my arm.

I know it's stupid. I'm twenty years old, not twelve, but this boy is still the only person I've ever kissed, or even liked, and he .… voluntarily.

So far, the whole Hummel Garage experience has been surreal. Just seeing Kurt and hearing his voice totally made my day. His eyes are even more expressive than I remember, but he looks different. Sad, I guess, and in a way I've never seen him before. It really makes me wonder what his year has been like.

I also wonder what happened to Frodo. I'd almost forgotten about him, but now that I think about it, he was still with Kurt at graduation. Huh.

Kurt is talking again. Probably saying important things that I'll need to know when I start work, but I can't stop staring at his mouth. Well, his lips. Damn they're soft. At least, I remember them being soft and they certainly look soft.

He's glaring at me a bit now. I should really listen.

"David, is there something on my face?" He asked, swiping his index finger over his lips and chin.

"Um, no. Sorry, I zoned out there for a minute. So, the blue files are completed orders? What are the yellow ones?" I hoped that I hadn't just made an ass of myself and that we were still talking about the color coding system. Please.

"Oh, the yellow ones are claims that need to be processed. You won't have to worry about those for the most part though. My dad likes to see to those personally." Kurt ushered me back in to the main portion of the garage and I let out a sigh of relief.

This whole friendship thing was only going to work if I kept my thoughts clean and my mouth shut, both of which seemed highly unlikely at this point.

Kurt would never want me. He was probably still with Baggins and only sad that they had to be apart for the summer. Damn that was depressing to think about because that Prep School kid had everything I didn't.

He was talented and dapper and fucking charming.

Yeah, I didn't stand a chance.

.0

I won't freak out. I won't, I won't, I won't.

David Karofsky was not staring at my mouth. Really he wasn't. I must have had oil on my face, even though I didn't see any on my hand. No! Still not possible.

My dad was looking at us strangely as we approached the bay doors and I hoped that he couldn't see my panic. He might misinterpret its meaning.

"Alright Dad, I showed him around the office and the supply room. If you want I can show him how to use the lifts." I needed to show my dad, just in case he was concerned, that I would willingly spend more time with David.

And I really would, now that I thought about it. Possible pervy leering aside, he was pretty good company. I always knew he was smart for a jock. Ridiculously good at math from what I remember and he seemed to pick up on things pretty quickly.

"No, it's alright kiddo. You can head on home David. We'll see you bright and early, seven o'clock tomorrow morning." My dad put his hand on David's shoulder as he ushered him out the front door and I had to appreciate David's improved physique again. Broad shoulders leading into what looked like a defined chest and stomach. Maybe I was the perv in this situation and I was projecting a bit of that onto David in my head. I should stop being so conceded.

I'm sure David stopped, if he ever had, wanting me a long time ago.

He was a starting Freshman on Cornell's hockey team. He was kind and seemed like a good listener. In fact, I would be surprised if he didn't have a boyfriend already. Funny, I didn't think to ask.

So not important right now, though. I could feel my father's stare as he came back into the garage and I knew I'd have a bit of explaining to do.

**A/N:** This story won't let me sleep. It begs me to be written. I really liked this chapter. It totally made up for how awkward I thought the second one was. Thanks again to all the reviewers. Also to those who favorite and follow my story. So much love.

"I have who have nothing (especially not ownership of Glee), I have who have no one (not even Darren Criss : ( )..."

Sorry, so I still don't own anything. Just in case you all were curious.


	4. Chapter 4

I tried not to think too hard on my obvious attraction to my former bully. I wasn't really ready to think about any one in that capacity, much less Dave Karofsky, but it was pretty obvious that my dad noticed. Really, the inconvenient times he chooses to be observant.

So, I was ushered right back into my dad's office as soon as David left. I assumed he would want to continue our talk from earlier or talk about David. I wasn't really excited about the prospect of either. I really just wanted to go home and crawl back in my bed. I sat back down in the chair in front of my dad's desk, still wistfully thinking of my bed, and waited for my dad to steer us in whatever direction he wanted to go.

"What the hell was that?" my dad asked angrily.

Okay, not at all what I had expected.

"What?" I adjusted in my seat uncomfortably. I really hated it when my dad was disappointed in me, but it was even worse when I didn't know why.

"You were- I may be old, but I'm not blind, Kurt. Is there going to be a problem if Dave works here? I expected a bit of tension, at first, but whatever is going on with you two is more than I bargained for."

I almost laughed at how serious he looked. I had inkling that the word "tension" was correct in this situation, but my dad hadn't yet figured out what kind. He thought we still had unresolved anger.

Unresolved something, no doubt, but I didn't sense any of the resentment or self hatred that had once plagued David.

"Don't worry, Dad, we'll figure it out. It might take some time, but I'm really going to make an effort to be friends with him. Just give us a little time to work this out on our own. We're not in high school anymore." I pleaded with my eyes, the way had since I was four, the way he never said no to. Well, almost never.

"Alright, but I better not hear a word, from either of you, that isn't completely complimentary, you understand?" I nodded, still a little uneasy about letting my dad think that there was animosity left between David and I.

I was pretty sure it was better he thought that, than knowing the truth though.

0.0.0

Burt Hummel was not an idiot. He knew that there was a hell of a lot more to his son's high school drama than he had ever picked up on. So, when Paul Karofsky called him asking for advice on how to talk to a moody, gay teenager, he knew he was overqualified to help.

As the two got to talking, sharing thoughts on what had transpired between their sons, they both quietly wondered what had given Dave the extra push to go from annoying and hurtful to possible expulsion.

"What if Kurt figured it out?" Burt finally said.

"What if Kurt knew that Dave was gay this whole time and Dave only threatened him because he was scared Kurt would tell people?" They shared a contemplative glance and knew Burt had just hit on something.

"Okay, so let's assume that's true." Paul said after a moment. "How would Kurt find out? I've known Dave his whole life and I never had a clue." Paul finished off his beer and offered to grab Burt another.

"I guess, in that sense, I was lucky. I've known Kurt was gay since he was a toddler. I can't imagine what it must be like for you." Burt accepted the cold beer and paid attention to the match for a few short seconds.

"Kurt would never do that, though. He didn't out Dave. Maybe that's why it got better so abruptly. Maybe while they had that Bully Whips thing going on, David finally figured out that my son wasn't going to hurt him."

"And your son figured out the same thing about mine." They shared yet another knowing look.

"You don't think anything ever _happened_ between them, do you?" Burt finally asked. They were both thinking it, he was just the one to voice it.

"I don't know if Dave ever acted on anything, but I'm sure, now that he's out, that he's had a thing for your boy for a while now. But he's shy about those things, or at least I thought he was, but then I also thought he liked girls. So, maybe I should stop guessing." Paul laughed at himself and Burt joined in.

"I've got quite a bit of experience with Kurt and how he crushes. Believe me, if he felt _anything_ for Dave, I would have known it. He's very open and obvious. Maybe a little too obvious. I remember when he met Blaine. I could tell the difference in his attitude literally the same day." Burt frowned and took another swig of beer.

"How is that going? You talk pretty highly of him, but do you really think that him and your son are going to make it through college?"

"I don't know. If I'm being completely honest, no. Blaine's a nice kid, don't get me wrong, but I know Kurt and he needs someone who will chase him; someone who's not afraid to put him in his place when it's called for. Blaine's a little too nice. I don't think he has what it takes to keep up with Kurt's crazy." Burt chuckled into his beer and hoped he hadn't over shared. It was nice to have someone, another dad, to talk to about his concerns.

"Yeah, Kurt is definitely unique, but he's a good kid. I appreciate what I think he's done for my son. I get the feeling that he helped Dave a lot more than he knows. I'm not sure that Dave would have come out without Kurt's influence." Paul paused as his stomach grumbled.

"You want a hot dog? I'm starving. I'll grab us a few more beers on the way out." Paul slowly got up off the couch and made his way into the Kitchen.

"What would you think if something had happened between our boys? Would you be okay with it if, eventually, they got together?" Burt asked off-handedly.

Paul stopped looking in the fridge and stared back at Burt for a moment.

"I think if they could get over all their history, they could be really good for each other. If Dave feels for Kurt the way I think he does, he'd chase Kurt til the day he dies." He chuckled a bit and pulled out the package of hot dogs.

"But my boy's as stubborn as they come. No matter how head over heels he gets, no one would ever be able to walk all over him. Though, I'm pretty sure Kurt would give it a shot." Both men laughed at that.

Paul plugged in the counter top grill and pulled out some condiments.

"What do you like on your hot dogs? I've got pretty much everything." He started pulling out more ingredients; relish, bacon bits, cheese sauce, and fried onions.

Burt stared longingly at the cheese sauce.

"I'll just have relish and ketchup, thanks." He said bitterly.

"No problem. So, what are Kurt's plans for the summer? He coming home?" Paul placed two buns in the toaster oven and finally handed Burt another beer.

"Thanks. Probably just working in the garage with me and spending every other waking second at the mall. Kid knows how to shop." They both laughed as the timer went off on the hot dogs.

"You need any extra help this summer? I know Dave will be looking for a job when he gets home. He still has to save up money for travel and books." Burt stared at him for a moment, lost in thought.

"I don't know how Kurt would react to Dave being around. What if we're wrong? What if something did go down with them and we're just bringing shit back up."

"Look, Burt, I want my son to be happy. If you think Kurt and Blaine won't last, what's the harm in at least seeing where it would go?" Paul handed Burt a plate and sat back down on the couch.

"Okay, we'll give it a shot, but no pushing. We'll get them in the same space and whatever happens, happens." He took a big bite of his hot dog and really wished for some cheese sauce.

0.0

What a fucking day.

I walked into Hummel Tire Co. with very few expectations. I wasn't sure if Kurt was going to be there. I didn't know what to expect from Burt Hummel, who seemed nice and forgiving, but still completely terrifying. Especially after all the shit I did to his family.

I technically owed him a semester's tuition at some fancy school and he was the one giving me a job.

The job seemed easy enough and being around Kurt again, even for that short amount of time, had been amazing. Maybe too amazing. My prior thoughts of using this time with him to get over my crush seemed silly now. Whether we were a state apart or a foot apart, Kurt Hummel was _it._

That's not to say I don't have thoughts or feelings outside of him, but every time I see a man I think I could be attracted to I find myself comparing him to Kurt and then I always find the other man lacking. Never Fails.

So, Kurt and I were going to be friends. Fantastic.

I could already hear the constant hobbit diatribe. God, what was that kid's name? 'B' something.

Well, I'm sure I'll know it soon enough.

When I got home, my dad had all kinds of questions about the shop and how I liked everything. I could tell he was beating around the bush, trying to get an answer to a question he didn't really want to ask.

"Dad, everything went great. Burt was really nice and I start tomorrow. Now, what do you really want to know?" I toed off my shoes by the sofa and finally plopped down on it. Getting past the old man really took it out of me.

"Were- did you get a chance to talk to Kurt?" He sat down, with a little less zealous, next to me. He looked concerned, but hopeful. It made me wonder how much of this he already had figured out.

"What do you know, Dad? Well, what do you think you know?" I picked up the remote and I almost turned the tv on, but something about the look on my dad's face told me this conversation was about to get serious, so I put it back down.

"Look, Dave, you've made it obvious since you got back that you're feelings for Kurt run pretty deep. I was just wondering how it went, seeing him again." God, I hoped I wasn't that obvious to Kurt.

"It went alright. We decided to try to be friends since we'll be working together. It doesn't really matter how I feel though, dad, hasn't he been with the hobbit kid for like three years. I can't compete with that." I looked down at my hands sadly. I'd resigned myself to never having Kurt, I didn't need my dad giving me false hope.

"Hobbit kid? Blaine?" God damn it, that's his name! _Blaine. _Even the fucker's name was pretentious.

"Yeah, I met him a few times in school. I never heard about them breaking up, so I just assumed they were still together." I really tried not to sound too bitter, but the look on my dad's face told me I failed. Horrendously.

"You should talk to Kurt about it Dave. It's not my place to tell you." I could tell the conversation was over. My dad grabbed the remote and flipped to a basketball game.

What the hell did all that mean? Why would my dad know anything about Kurt and _Blaine_ anyway? Now I _had_ to know what happened. Tomorrow was going be interesting.

**A/N:** The Burt/Paul scene is dedicated to cornflakesareglutenfree! I hope you enjoyed it! This is obviously going to be a pretty long fic. I hope you all like slow burn. Kurt's no where near ready for how Dave feels. Just wanted to make sure you all were ready for at least 10 more chapters. : )


	5. Chapter 5

Six a.m came much faster than I wanted it to. Dragging myself out of bed at the ass crack of dawn was not what I had envisioned for my summer vacation.

As I stood in the shower, trying to mentally prepare myself for the day ahead, I started to feel a bit more human. I might have spent more time on my hair, making sure it spiked up just a bit in the front. Maybe.

After that incredibly awkward talk with my dad, I'd let myself hope, just a bit, that Kurt was at the very least single. Single or not, I was still unconvinced that he could ever want me, but I can't let the fear of rejection keep me from going for it.

Well, at least consider going for it. I should really try to be Kurt's friend first, right? I think I read somewhere that the most stable relationships grow from a strong foundation of friendship, or something like that.

As scary as it was to think about, if Kurt ever did give me a chance, I don't think I'd ever be able to let him go. So, words like 'stable' and 'foundation' sounded like things I should pay attention to. If I was going to do this, I was going to do it _right_.

Now, I just had to figure out how to talk to him.

Yep, I'm pretty fucked.

0.0.0

As I pulled up to the garage, I had to admit that I was really curious. Not just about how David and I would get along, but also if he'd felt what I had yesterday. Did I imagine the way he looked at me? After I got home it was really easy to chalk everything up to my over active imagination, but why would I imagine that? It was all way too damn confusing.

And of course, there was Blaine, always in the back of my mind and very often at the front of it. I still thought about him all the time. Something random would remind me of a moment we shared, some poignant and some frivolous, but that had been my life. I'd made him my future, so it was completely normal to wonder what he was doing and where he was. That kind of connection didn't just fade over night.

It was selfish, I knew, but I really wanted to hear his voice. Just to know that he was okay and moving on, even if that thought hurt too.

_"I hope that, someday, you'll find someone who can do for you what you did for me. I wouldn't be who I am today without you. I- I hope you find the person that heals you."_

I really did want that for him.

"You feeling alright, there, kiddo?" I heard my dad say from the passenger seat. I looked up at him and he shot me a questioning glance.

"Yeah, sorry, got lost in my thoughts for a minute. You ready for that Transmission Flush today? She looks like a doozy." I try to lighten the mood, but again, my dad is selectively perceptive.

"I know we didn't get a chance to finish our talk from yesterday, but I hope you know you can still come to me, with anything. Whenever you're ready, please just talk to someone." He patted my knee and swung his door open.

It was going to be a very, very long day.

0.0.0

I figured this wouldn't be easy, but after stopping myself from staring at Kurt's ass for the tenth time that hour, I thought maybe I was masochist. My eyes were just barely on something innocent when Burt walked into the office holding a pizza box.

Thank you, Jesus, I'm starving.

"Hey, boys, I brought us some pizza. Um, I'm gonna finish up this break job, but you go ahead and take your break." I saw Kurt's eyes squint in calculation, but he grabbed a plate and handed me one as well.

We'd been working in a comfortable silence all morning. I'd ask a few questions, but, for the most part, we kept to ourselves. It's not at all how I'd hoped it would play out.

I'd hoped I could locate my balls and actually try to talk him, about anything. I'd settle for something completely superficial and pointless.

"So, is this how you are with all your friends?" Kurt asks playfully. I watch him take the smallest bite of pizza imaginable and that makes me giggle.

I just giggled in front of Kurt Hummel. Fuck my life.

And now he's laughing at me. Awesome.

"No, I figured I'd let you decide when and if you talked to me. I'm not going to push anything." He looks really surprised, no impressed. I impressed him.

"Well, that's very mature of you, David."

I love how he says my name. No one else calls me David. God, I need to get a grip.

"Thanks. Di- did you want to talk? I hear I'm an above average listener." I smirk through my bite of pizza and he smiles.

"Sure, I guess I just don't know where to start." There was a moment's pause while I let him gather his thoughts.

"I really meant what I said yesterday." I blurt out and now he's looking at me, obviously expecting me elaborate.

I rubbed the back of my neck and put my plate down. Okay, this is it. What's the Harry Potter saying? In for knut, in for a galleon.

God, I'm a _nerd_.

Focus, man, you can do this!

"When I said that there were things I want to tell you. I- It's not going to be easy, so if you could just bare with me." He nodded and put down his plate as well. I had his undivided attention.

"So, I told you I came out. It's only been a few months, but I know that I never could have done it… without you." I searched his eyes for evidence that he understood. I nearly reached for his hand, but stopped myself.

"I know what I did that day in the locker room is unforgivable, no matter how many times you tell me otherwise, but I can't completely regret it. I don't know where I'd be or who I'd be right now if you hadn't known. You were constantly in the back of my mind giving me courage. Y- you're such a good person, Kurt, and-" I wasn't completely sure how much I wanted to share today, maybe eventually, he'd know everything. I couldn't hold his gaze for this next part, so I looked down and studied my hands.

"If I didn't know how to handle something, I'd just try to think about what you would do. I'm better, Kurt, I'm a better person because of you." It felt like a weight had been lifted off my chest as soon as I said it. I'd been holding it in for so long.

I finally looked up, really fearing his reaction.

He was crying, but also smiling. I didn't know what that meant, but I had to wipe a tear from his left cheek. I literally _had_ to feel his soft skin under my thumb.

His eyes were wide and questioning as I pulled my hand away. He looked incredibly confused.

"David, I don't know what to say." He paused and seemed to consider his words carefully.

"You don't have to say anything." I stood up then and threw my pizza away. I suddenly wasn't hungry anymore. Our eyes met again and I could tell he was having trouble processing everything. I could see him trying to think over our past encounters and what we'd been through together. I sat back down and took a deep breath. One more thing. I could do this.

"I just needed you to know and maybe understand why it was so hard for me to accept your forgiveness. After everything you've done for me, even unknowingly, I can't think of a single instance where I did anything but disappoint you. Which is why I kept my distance senior year. I wouldn't have handled it well then, if I had to see that look on your face one more time."

I sat back in my chair fully then and waited. I wasn't sure what I was waiting for, but if I knew Kurt Hummel, which I felt like I did, this conversation was far from over.

0.0.0

Burt Hummel was a not a sneaky guy. He tried really hard to be honest, especially when it came to his son, but in this case, he was willing to make an exception. He called Paul as soon as he shut the door to his office, leaving his two youngest employees to talk. He really hoped they would take the opportunity to figure things out.

"Hey. I just left them in the office."

"Do you think they suspect anything?"

"Kurt looked a little suspicious that I was passing up pizza, but I don't think it's anything I can't handle."

"Ok. Are they doing alright? No fighting?"

"No fighting, but not a whole lot of anything else either. It's been really quiet all day."

"I told you my boy is shy. Especially with something like this, Kurt is going to have to make the first move to talk."

"Yeah, he looked a little frustrated with it, so we'll see if he caves. I gotta get back to these breaks, but I'll call you later."

"Alright, man."

0.0.0

_Wow._

There aren't many times in my life when I've had trouble finding words to express myself, but this was one of them.

David Karofsky _cared_ about me. It was written plainly on his face as he talked. I wasn't sure what kind of feelings they were, but at the very least, he wanted to be my friend. Like a good friend. I could really use one of those right now.

David and I have always had a strange understanding between us. He was my first kiss, and as traumatizing as the experience was at the time, no one else can understand it quite like he can. No one else understands me the way he does.

Which is a little frightening now that I think about it.

I look over at him waiting patiently for me respond.

What the hell am I supposed to say? Does this mean I was right? That I'm not crazy and he does look at me funny? I'm not really ready to know the answer yet.

"In a completely fucked up way, I wouldn't be who I am without you either." He leans forward in his chair a bit, looking completely open to whatever I'm about to say.

He really is a good listener.

"Watching you struggle the way you did, it made me very grateful. Yes, I had bullies and yes, dumpster diving sucked, but I _knew_ who I was. And so did everyone else. No one was surprised when I came out. I don't even know why I bothered doing it at all, but you had the option to hide. The fact that I had any part in you accepting yourself, I can't even explain how happy that makes me. It's all I ever wanted for you in the end." I stopped for a moment at the expression on his face.

"That's why you're incredible." He says softly and my breath hitches.

"Even after all the shit I did to you. After everything I put you through, you want me to be happy. No thought of revenge or retaliation. Do you see how unique and _special_ that is? How special you are?"

For the second time that day I have no idea what to say.

"T-Thank you? I… I never knew you felt that way." I kick myself a bit for how insinuating that sounds.

"I mean, I never knew you paid that much attention to what I did or didn't do." I literally face-palm at that and decide to stay quiet for a while.

"I did. I still do actually. A- are you okay?" The question catches me completely off guard.

"What do you mean?" I squirm a bit in my seat. I thought I'd been doing a pretty good job of keeping myself together at work.

"I know it's been a while, but you seem, um, sad. I- just whenever, if you ever want to talk about it, I'm here, okay?" I smile at how nervous he is.

"Thank you, David, for everything." I stand up and motion for him to stand as well. It only seems right to hug him.

So, I slowly reach up and he catches on when I'm about half way to him. I wrap my arms around his midsection and he wraps his arms around my shoulders. It feels nice.

"I-I really needed to hear some of the things you said today." I said into his shoulder. I squeeze just a little bit harder than necessary and start to let go. It feels reluctant, but he slowly drops his arms.

Looking up at him, I can tell this is going to work out. I honestly have a new friend in David Karofsky.

**A/N: **Legit development guys! Thanks to everyone who reviewed! I'll try to get the next chapter out tomorrow night, but my work week is starting back up, so I make no promises.


	6. Chapter 6

As I sat at my Dad's desk, I thought about my conversation with David. Every time I thought back on his words, about how genuine and honest they'd been, I would realize how little I really knew about him.

Had this person always been hiding under the hostility or did he grow as David accepted himself for who he was? Did I really help him become this person?

The intensity in his eyes every time we happen to glance at each other frightened me. David frightened me, but not in the way he used to. I was scared of all the possibilities.

Maybe David's admiration was completely platonic and he only wanted me to understand how he felt to get closure. Maybe we could really be friends.

I just needed to spend more time with him; really try to get to know him. I had the whole summer almost to myself, so my schedule was wide open.

Mercedes was in Alabama visiting family. Rachel decided to take the lead role in some summer project back in New York and Finn chose to stay with her.

That sucked too. Blaine and I had spent a lot of time with Rachel and Finn. We went on double dates and dragged Finn to plays. Rachel and I had grown pretty close over the last two years, but now it was awkward to hang out with them. It hurt to think of everything the four of us had done, almost as a unit.

No, I would not do this in my Dad's office. I needed to get out, do something fun. I'd locked myself up too long. Even though I got out of bed now, I really only went to work.

So, what would best take my mind off all this shit?

Ah, shopping.

I looked up when the door opened and watched David grab his bag.

"See you tomorrow." He mumbled.

"Yeah." I responded, nodding my head.

This could be a good opportunity. I'd get my shopping in, get to spend some time with David, and he'd be able to distract me from all the things that mall would inevitably make me think about.

David was already out the door and half way through the garage by the time I got out of my chair.

0.0.0

I was heading to my truck when I heard Kurt call my name. I turned and saw him running out of the office to catch up with me. He stood in front of me for an awkward, silent moment and I almost asked if he was okay.

"Do you want to go to the mall with me? I know it's probably not your favorite place, but I have to scope out this sweater." He looked really nervous, which was adorable.

I weighed my options. On one hand, I'd get to spend more time with Kurt. On the other, I still hadn't figured out whether or not that was even a good idea and, shopping, still not my thing. I've been told I'm the straightest gay dude ever.

"Sure, but what about Mercedes or Blaine? Wouldn't they be better suited shopping partners?" As soon as I said it, I realized how insensitive it was. I had no idea what happened with the hobbit. And, sure enough, Kurt's face twisted into a sad, I want to cry, but I won't in front of you, frown. I'd fucked up.

"I'm sorry. That wasn't very tactful." I put my hand on his forearm, trying to comfort him without overstepping my friend boundaries.

"No, I'm fine. It's just a little fresh still." So, they had broken up. What the hell happened? I pulled my hand back and stared at the tops of my shoes.

How do I fix this?

"How about I buy you a pretzel to make up for it? And I'll drive." I wasn't sure if a pretzel was even something he would consider eating, but it was the best I could come up with. He smiled at me, but it didn't quite reach his eyes and shifted his weight a few times.

"Okay, let me just tell my dad." He turned and I watched him walk to the very back of the garage where his dad was under a monster of an F150.

Damn it all. When the boy you like asks you to go somewhere, the very last thing you bring up is a possible ex boyfriend. I know I don't have any experience with this whole thing, but even I know that.

In my defense, Kurt turns my brain to mush. Like right now, he has to lean down just slightly so his dad can hear him and he still wears those damned skinny jeans.

Yeah, mush.

Kurt stood back up straight and made his way back over to the bay doors.

"Okay, let's go." He smiled again, bigger this time and let me lead the way.

0.0.0

The ride over to the mall was filled with their signature comfortable silence. I was too caught up in my own thoughts to try to make small talk.

There were two things bothering me. One, David was sure to ask questions about Blaine at some point now, and I'm not sure that I'm ready to talk about it. Two, if I were to be comfortable talking to someone about it right now, that person would be David.

It took David one lunch break to earn my trust and my curiosity. I wanted to know how he liked school and what his favorite thing about hockey was. I had all these questions, I just had to break out of this self induced shell, but it was hard. The last few months with Blaine really ate away at my self confidence.

Blaine didn't want me. Blaine didn't listen to me, so why would anyone else? I had to snap out of it though. I had to constantly remind myself that I was worth more than that.

David was helping me more than he knew.

David threw me a sideways glance as we got out of the truck and I knew he'd noticed my self-depreciating contemplation.

"Where do you want to go first?" he asked as we entered the big double doors.

I thought for a moment. The sweater I wanted to check out was at Banana Republic, but that pretzel sounded great right now. A little carbfest might make me feel better.

"How bout we get that pretzel you owe me first and then we'll head over to Banana." He looked at me a little strange then.

"There's a legit store named Banana?" I laughed at his confusion and steered him towards the food court.

"No, Banana Republic. God, I have so much to teach you." His eyes grew wide and he almost ran into a trash can. I doubled over in laughter.

"Don't look so scared and please watch where you're going. I'm so not taking you to the emergency room."

We finally made it to the pretzel stand and he motioned for me to order first.

"I'll have cinnamon sticks," I looked at David for a moment.

"And one of those strawberry slushy things?" David nodded and I smiled at him.

"We can share it if you want. I can't ever finish one, but they're so damn good." I waited while he ordered and then grabbed my pretzel and beverage excitedly.

David smiled at me, obviously amused by my behavior.

"Don't judge me. I never let myself eat this crap." I said as we found a small table by the pretzel stand.

"I didn't think it was the best apology ever, but you're starting to make me think otherwise." He smiled at me again as I nibbled on one of the cinnamon sticks.

I couldn't suppress a groan of delight when the fluffy texture melted on my tongue.

"Maybe not the best ever, but certainly up there." I said as I took a sip of the slushy. He grabbed it when I put it down and took a large gulp.

And then the irony of the situation really hit me.

I was sharing a slushy with David Karofsky.

David looked at me questioningly when I burst into laughter and pressed my hand to my forehead.

"Um, do I even want to know?" he asked as my laughter subsided.

"We are sharing a slushy." I said simply, wondering if he would find the situation funny or uncomfortable.

"We are." He nodded his head and smiled brightly.

"That's awesome." He said as he took another sip and a huge bite of his pretzel.

"Yeah." I responded and looked around the food court, trying to gather my thoughts.

"So, how do you like school? Have you declared a major?" He puts down his pretzel and finishes chewing.

"I love my school. The people are nice and my team is amazing. As for a major, I'm not sure yet. I've thought about accounting or something math related, but I don't know if I could sit at a desk all day with only a calculator for company." He finishes off his last bite of pretzel and pushes the last of the slushy my way.

I smile at the small gesture, but push it back to him.

"No thanks. I'm full." He looks at me sideways and gulps down the last bit.

"You only ate two those stick things and you had like four sips of the slushy. And you barely finished one piece of pizza today at lunch. How do you survive?" He looked dumbfounded and I had to giggle.

"After my last growth spurt, my metabolism went back to normal and I had to start watching what I eat again. Not that I ever really stopped, but I could get away with things I can't now. Not all of us can eat anything we want and still look as good as you." I put my hand over my mouth and flushed. I hadn't blushed in a very long time.

I can't bring myself to take my eyes off the table. I really want to look up and see his reaction, but I'm also really embarrassed.

Curiosity finally wins out and I meet his eyes. He's looking at me in disbelief.

"You- you really think that?" he asks softly. I look down again and nod.

"I don't want to bring up bad memories, so if you don't want-" I stop him with a glare and motion with my hands for him to go on.

"What you said that day, in the locker room," he pauses, obviously uncomfortable.

"About chubby boys and balding, it pushed me. I-I hurt you so much that day. I never blamed you for anything you said, but it still came back to me. Every time I wanted to stop, every time I thought about giving up or skipping a rep, I heard you." He stopped again and ran his fingers down his face and then back up, ruffling his hair.

"It was a terrible thing to say." I said softly.

"I just wanted to make you doubt yourself. I wanted you to understand, feel a little bit of what you made me feel every day." His expression as he listened was hard to watch. The self hatred that had been absent the last two days was now on full display.

"David," I said and surprised myself and him when I covered his hand with mine.

"You're not that person anymore. I can see that. I want to get to know the new you. I _trust_ you. Do you understand how huge that is?" His eyes were still trained on our hands and I gripped his hand just a bit tighter.

He finally looked up and I could tell he was holding back a few tears. I smiled at him and withdrew my hand.

We sat in silence for a few minutes as I let him gather his thoughts. He got up and threw our trash away. As he sat down, I could tell the moment had passed.

"How about we go check out that sweater?" He asked, obviously unsure of where we stood.

"Okay." I said as we both stood.

0.0.0

I was seriously conflicted as we walked the mall. Part of me was giddy. First, Kurt thought I was attractive. Second, Kurt had held my hand, obviously a friendly gesture, but still amazing.

The other part felt like shit. It still hurt to think of all the damage I'd done to Kurt, not just physically, but emotionally. It felt like I'd never live long enough to make up for it.

Kurt had forgiven me though. Kurt trusted me.

I had to make sure that I never made him regret it.

"Thanks for giving me a second chance, Kurt." I said suddenly. He looked over at me and smiled.

"You're welcome. You earned it though." He said as we turned into Banana Republic.

As Kurt flitted down isles and around clothing fixtures, I waited in the center of the store. I'd tried following him at first, but gave up pretty quickly. He just moved too damn fast.

So, I used the time to think about everything that had happened today.

Kurt was single, but obviously hurting. That thought made me want to find Baggins and break my hockey stick on his face.

I would be whatever Kurt needed to me to be. I would be his friend right now. There were times I saw a glimpse of the old Kurt Hummel. Like right now, in his element. I smiled as he threw a scathing look at a frightened sales girl.

For the most part though, he was withdrawn and quiet.

My mission was to get back the real Kurt. The boy I was in love with.

"Damn, I'm in love with Kurt Hummel." I said softly to myself.

**A/N: **Sorry this took longer than I'd hoped, but I'm so happy with it. A little bit of development and no Baul, but don't worry, they'll be back. Hope you all liked it. Thanks for reviewing!


	7. Chapter 7

**Warning: **Smutty dream is smutty.

The rest of the week passed in a bit of a blur for me. David and I would work the early shift together, often talking through lunch, and then hang out after.

The thing that sucks the most about ending a long term relationship is the emptiness. I still had school and family, but it didn't fill the Blaine sized hole in my life.

My friendship with David was starting to fill the void. He made me laugh, sometimes so hard I cried, and he made me feel like everything I said was important and interesting. My curiosity where he was concerned was insatiable.

The boy that I now remember getting glimpses of in high school was the real David Karofsky. We hadn't talked about our past together since that first day. Despite how heavy our conversations started and how much I trusted David, I still felt a little guarded around everyone.

I knew I wasn't back to my full diva potential, but I was slowly getting there and it was obvious to me, and everyone else, how much my time with David was helping.

0.0.0

What a week. Well, five days. It took Kurt five days to completely take over my life. I'd already been dreaming about him, but now that I actually got to spend time with him, I found myself thinking about him constantly.

Whenever I heard a new song or saw an advert for a new movie, I immediately wanted to know what he thought of it.

Oh, and his voice.

I always knew he was talented, but I was still caught off guard the first time I heard him casually singing under his breath in the office. It was beautiful.

Just one more thing that now haunted my dreams. I dreamt of him every night now in vivid detail. Sometimes they were completely innocent and others were decidedly not.

Even the sexual dreams had become more romantic. If I dreamt about him before in that way, it was frantic and needy. Like a teenager would dream.

Now it felt so real. Every time I woke up from a dream sweating and panting my heart ached. Every time I reached out half asleep and found no one there, I told myself it had to stop, but I'm not really in control. I can't stop the dreams any more than I can make them come true.

One thing has become incredibly clear in the last few days; Kurt is not okay. I knew before that he was sad and obviously hurting, but it's more than that. Whatever he's been through broke his spirit. He never wears his outfits anymore. I thought, at first, that he just didn't want to wear them to the shop, but even when we met outside of work he looked so normal. So _not_ Kurt.

Burt's reaction to the singing makes me think that it's new and an improvement, which is good, but not enough.

Eventually, my hope is that he'll feel comfortable enough with me to talk about it.

All of that just makes me feel even more guilty about the dreams.

0.0.0

_I'm sitting at the desk in my dad's office, shuffling papers around and trying to get everything organized. David's sitting in one of the chairs in front of me trying to find a receipt. As I look up at him, I see his bottom lip is tucked tightly between his teeth in concentration. _

_I wonder if his lips are soft or if they're chapped. I kind of hope they're somewhere in between. Manly, but sexy. I also wonder what the tongue that keeps darting out tastes like. I bet its minty. _

_Mmm._

_I stand up and sit in the chair next to him, still not taking my eyes off his mouth. I haven't even come up with an excuse for my move when he looks up at me. He registers the look in my eyes very quickly and visibly gulps. _

_He puts the receipts down and folds his hands in his lap. I can tell there's a serious internal struggle going on. He wants me. I want him. This doesn't have to be complicated. _

_Right. _

_I lunge at him, grasping his head between my hands, but stop half way and search his eyes. I see no hesitation or displeasure. In fact, his pupils are blown and he's breathing heavily. _

_I swoop down quickly, covering his mouth with mine tentatively. At first, it's sweet and hesitant, but David quickly deepens the kiss, swiping his tongue across my bottom lip. I grant him entrance and gently roll my tongue over his._

_His groan is low and guttural. _

_It spurs me on as I move around my chair and arrange myself in his lap. His hands go straight to my hips and he pulls me closer to him, letting my legs fall to either side of him. _

_The kiss intensifies when our pelvises meet and I feel his erection pulse against mine through our clothes. I sweep my tongue over the roof of his mouth and swirl around the tip of his tongue suggestively._

_He lets out another moan and wraps his arms around my lower back. I don't realize what he's doing til it's too late and I'm seated on the desk with my legs still wrapped around him. He pulls me impossibly closer to him and ends our epic kiss, only to trail his lips down my jaw and neck. _

"_God damn it, Fancy, you can't just do shit like that. I-I can barely control myself around you as it is." His sentence is punctuated with short nips and long open mouthed kisses from one side of my neck to the other._

_I wonder at the nickname for just a second, but lose track of the thought when he pulls me back into a heated kiss. His hands are wandering all over my torso and lower back. They slip under my shirt and I moan at the feeling of his calloused fingers on my skin. His hands stop at the curve of my hips and clench as I wrap my legs tighter around him, grinding our pelvises together again. The friction is nice, but not nearly enough._

"_David, please." I'm not sure what I'm asking for, but he nods and uses his grasp on my hips as leverage to buck our hips together. I can feel his erection rub against mine on every thrust and it's driving me crazy. _

_I want it. I want to feel it and taste it. I want it inside me. _

_Apparently, I vocalized some of that, or all of it, I'm not sure, but he stills completely and just stares at me. _

_His eyes are open and honest I know he wants that too._

_I push myself back away from him a bit and reach to unzip his jeans. He doesn't stop me, so I push them down along with his boxers. _

_Seeing him for the first time, I'm pleasantly surprised. His cock matches his build perfectly. Thick and long. My mouth waters at the sight and he knows exactly what I'm thinking._

"_Kurt," I look into his eyes again and find something surprising in his gaze. Amidst the lust and want, there's a lot of love. I place my fingers on his lips to keep him from speaking._

"_I know. I want you right now. We can talk about it later." He looks a bit bewildered, but pushes his jeans down the rest of the way. I jump off the desk and push him carefully so that his back is flush against the far wall. _

_As I sink to my knees in front of him, I look up. There's absolutely no green left in his beautiful eyes and he's biting his lip again. Really, he's never looked sexier._

_I lower my eyes to his cock and let out a moan when his scent hits my nostrils. He smells like Irish Spring and sex. _

_There's already a generous amount of pre-cum flowing from his tip and I long to taste it. I reach my hand out to feel the silky soft skin just beneath the head, slowly dragging my fingers down the shaft. He whimpers softly and I know he won't last long. I wrap my hand fully around him and tug up once._

_I lower my head down to him and lick the tip, loving how his taste explodes on my taste buds for the first time. I waste no time in wrapping my mouth around his tip and sucking greedily at it. He's delicious and I need more._

_His fingers tentatively card through my hair and I can't stop myself from smiling around his erection. _

_I gradually take more of him in, alternately sucking and licking until I've swallowed nearly all of him and his hands are grasping at my hair tightly. _

_I bring my hands up to his and pull back sharply only to lower my mouth back on him again quickly. He catches on pretty quickly and starts to move his hips, slowly fucking my mouth._

_I look up at him through my lashes, half expecting his eyes to be closed, but he's staring back at me. I try to keep his gaze as he increases his thrusts. I love how his thumb drifts down to caress my cheek even as the tip of his cock rubs against the very back of my throat._

_His thrusts become uneven and I can tell he's close. He grips my head a bit tighter, pulses his fingers on my scalp, and pauses for just a second. I can tell he's giving me time to pull away but I urge him on, moaning around his cock._

_He groans once more, thrusts twice more and he's coming fast down my throat. I try to catch all of it, but some of it drips out the sides of my mouth and down my chin. _

_He slams his head back against the wall as I swallow around him, milking him of every drop._

_I pull back from his softening cock and go to wipe the come from my chin. He's just coherent enough to stop me. He wipes my chin with his finger, gathering it all up and places the finger back in front of my mouth._

_I look up at him and his playful smile. His green eyes are back and I can't help but smile back as I take his finger in my mouth and suck it clean._

_He groans one last time and retracts the digit just as I start to swirl my tongue around it. _

"_You're fucking incredible." He whispers, still trying to gain back some strength._

"_Thanks. You were just way too sexy for me to ignore." I smile up at him one last time before standing up. I pull his jeans and boxers back up and fasten them properly before he tilts my chin up the fraction it takes for our eyes to meet._

_This kiss is very different from our first. It's reassuring and thoughtful with no intention of becoming anything more._

"_Mmmm, I could get used to this." I whisper into his mouth._

"_You should." He whispers back._

I drift into consciousness slowly, half expecting David to still be there kissing me. When I sit up and the full reality of the situation hits me, I can't be disappointed. I pull the sheets back and grimace at the mess I've made. I haven't had a wet dream in years and I have to say I hadn't missed them.

Getting out of bed and peeling the soiled sleep pants off of me, I decide to head straight to the shower.

That was one hell of a dream.

0.0.0

David and I had plans to go to the movies after work today. Saturdays were always short days for us, so we decided to do something different.

After the dream I had last night, I'm not sure if I'll be able to look him in the eye without blushing. It was so real and so hot.

Halfway through our shift it's obvious to both of us that something is off. He doesn't know what it is, but I haven't really said more than two words to him.

I should have known that my bad day would only get worse. Seriously, when a day starts that good, there's only one direction for it to go.

0.0.0

Kurt and I are sitting in front of the desk in the office, silently eating our lunch. I don't know if he's mad at me or if he's just having a bad day, but he's worrying me.

His phone starts to ring. Teenage Dream. His whole body stiffens instantly and I have a pretty good idea who's calling him. I'm curious to see if he answers it in front of me, if at all.

He stares at it for a few seconds before a look of steely determination crosses his face and he hits the answer button.

"Hi." He answers shyly. I've never heard him use that tone of voice before.

"Um, I've been good. Just working with my dad." He nods his head along with the conversation and runs his hand through his hair. That's the last indication I need that he does not want to have this conversation.

"That's great. Look, I'm at work and I can't do this here. If you want to talk call me tomorrow after five." Whatever the hobbit says next makes Kurt's eyes well up with tears and I have to physically restrain myself from grabbing the phone out of his hands and throwing it against the wall.

"I-I miss you too, Blaine, but it doesn't change anything." He turns around after he says it. I know he's crying now. I can hear it in his breathing and the way his back hitches every few seconds.

"No, I can't talk about this right now. You can't fix this. We are so far beyond repair and I'm _almost_ okay. Do you understand? I still care about you, Blaine, but this isn't going to happen again. If you want to talk to me, as a friend, feel free to call me tomorrow. If you feel like that isn't something you're capable of doing, it won't hurt my feelings if you don't. In fact, I would completely understand. I'm hanging up now. Goodbye, Blaine." He shakily lowers the phone from his ear and presses the end button before letting it fall from his fingers. As his phone hits the floor, he stumbles back into a chair.

I can see his face now properly and there are tear tracks down both of his cheeks. His eyes are red and puffy, but there's still that look of determination in them and my respect for him grows just a bit more.

I'm not sure what I should do in this situation. Do I comfort him? Should I leave?

I probably should have left five minutes ago, if I was going to. Is he mad at me for staying?

Shit.

"Kurt?" I reach my hand out to rub his shoulder and he lets me.

"I know it's none of my business and I get it if you don't want to talk about anything, but I'm here. I know I've told you before, but I mean it. You're not alone in this, okay?" I try to catch his gaze, but he's studiously looking at the floor.

"Thank you, David. I know. You've already helped me through so much of this and you don't even know it." He shifts uncomfortably in his seat and reaches up his hand to cover mine still on his shoulder.

"You really don't mind?" He asks, so unsure, in a way that I've never seen him. I've seen him sad. I've seen how little he cares about most things these days, but what the _hell_ did that Blaine kid do to him that made him lose faith in himself?

"God, of course not. I-I care about you, Kurt. I'm going to help you in whatever way I can. Whatever way you let me that will get you through this." I know I've said a bit too much. I know, especially after that phone call, that my feelings for him are the least of his worries. I also think he knows, deep down, he's always known. And if being reminded of the fact that I adore him helps him understand what a dickwad this Blaine guy is, then that's what I'll do, everyday, until he gets it.

He's moved his hand off of mine, but I never removed my hand. He shrugs it off and turns in his chair, sitting Indian style with his elbows resting on the arm rest.

"I left him right before the end of last semester." He's looking down at his hands now, trying to figure out where to start.

"We were so happy in high school. He was everything I ever wanted; thoughtful, handsome, absolutely in love me." He let out a sad laugh at that.

"Things got complicated when we went to school. We roomed together, which in hindsight, was a horrible idea. He never completely let me in. I know he loved me, but he was distant and quiet. It felt like I had to have a nervous breakdown for him to show any kind of emotion." He stopped for a moment and breathed deeply. I put my hand on his forearm and squeezed lightly. He knew he could cry in front of me all he wanted, I would never judge him.

"We, um, we only had sex once and it didn't end how he wanted it to. He thought he'd failed and he was embarrassed. No matter what I did or said to him, he would not accept that I still wanted him. For months," the way his voice broke when he said _months_ made me ball my fists. If I ever saw Blaine, I was going to kick his ass.

"I-I threw myself at him, desperately wanting to rekindle whatever we had lost. But even when he did, um, give in, it was never the same. He wasn't there. He didn't-" Kurt's sob tore through his throat and everything he'd been holding back came tumbling out.

"He didn't _want_ me. He loved me, I know, but I couldn't take one more day of trying so damn hard to make something work that was so fucking broken." He lowered his head onto his forearms and cried.

I had no idea what to do, but it all made sense now and I had a lot of work ahead me.

**A/N:** Sorry for the wait guys, but my Kurtofsky muse ran off on me for a while. And then Furt took over. Oh, and then the Klaine kiss happened on tour and there was no hope left that I would be able to finish this chapter. I'm not really a shipper, I just love Kurt. Anyway, little bit of action there. I felt kinda bad that neither of the boys were getting any ; )

I hope the uber long chapter made up for the wait. Oh and the smut.

Still not mine.


	8. Chapter 8

**Warning: **Smutty dream is smutty (enjoy).**  
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I'm pretty conflicted. I want to tell Kurt. I want to make him understand how damaged Blaine must be to not see what was right in front of him. I still find it hard to believe that this kid could resist Kurt to the point where he felt so undesirable. If Kurt came on to me that way, even if I wanted to, I'm not sure I'd be able to control myself.

Also, the bastard took Kurt's virginity and then made it something he was ashamed of, something he regretted, which is not okay. Kurt deserves so much more than that. He's _worth_ so much more than that. He's not really ready to hear that yet though. I'm going to have to tread very carefully.

"Kurt, I-I'm." I stop myself from saying I'm sorry. That's not what Kurt needs right now.

"You know, right, that Blaine's issues aren't who you are?" He looks up at me over his arms, surprised. There's hope shining along with the tears in his eyes. He needs to hear this, but I hate that the first time I tell Kurt Hummel he's beautiful is because of some jack ass. I take one more look at the tears falling down his cheeks and decide that eventually, hopefully, it won't matter.

"I know I've, um, eluded to things, about how I feel, this past week, but I-" This is harder than I thought it would be. I close my eyes and try to find the right words, the ones that will help Kurt, but not scare him either. I open my eyes to find that he's stopped crying and is staring at me, obviously very curious about where this is going.

"I've said before that you're a good person. I've told you about the impact you've had on my life, but I've never said, and maybe I should have, how beautiful you are, inside and out. Equally so." I shake my head and hope that I got my point across. I look at the floor and wait. I'm not sure if I'll be able to look up until he speaks, until I know that he doesn't hate me for my timing. I feel a hand on my chin, its soft and supple, and feel my head being lifted.

As I lock eyes with Kurt, all the tension leaves my body. He's smiling and there are new tears in his eyes, but I can tell they're not the same kind that they replaced.

"Thank you." He says as he cups my cheek. I try not to lean into the touch, but can't help myself. I've craved this for four years. These fingers have plagued my imagination for a very long time and I can't deny myself this small moment.

I don't know when I closed my eyes again or how long Kurt and I stayed that way, but we both spring apart as the door opens quickly.

"Hey, kids, if you want to-" Burt stops and looks between us. I can tell he's thinking over the scene he just walked in on. I'm starting to wonder how long I have to live before I see an unmistakable, if not small, smile. Huh.

"Sorry, I-I was just wondering if you boys wanted to skip out early today. It's pretty dead and I know you wanted to see a movie." His stance changes as he talks. He's probably wondering if this movie outing is a date now. His face falls a bit as he takes in Kurt's puffy, red eyes and then looks at me again suspiciously.

"Thanks, Dad." Kurt looks uncomfortable.

"Don't look at him like that, he didn't do anything. Blaine called." Burt lightens for just a minute before becoming furious.

"What did he say? Did he-"

"It's fine. I handled it and I'm okay." He almost sounds convincing. To anyone who didn't know him, he really did sound fine, but there was a slight quiver in his voice and a completely depressing lack of sass.

"Look, Kurt, I know that David being around has helped you," Kurt throws an embarrassed look at his father.

"But I want to make one thing perfectly clear." Burt crosses the room and stoops in front of Kurt's chair.

"What Blaine's done to you, it can't be fixed over night. I don't want you getting involved too quickly with anyone, especially not someone I've grown to think so much of." He looks at me sideways and we share a smile.

"Dad, there's nothing going on with David and I. He has helped me quite a bit, but we're just friends. And I promise," he blushes and looks away from both of us for a second.

"If that changes you will be the first to know." My head shoots up and I try to catch his eyes, but he's avoiding both of us. My heart just exploded.

"And I would not make that decision lightly. I know I'm not there yet. Today has made that abundantly clear."

Burt looks really confused, but not particularly surprised.

"Alright. You let me know if you need anything." He squeezes Kurt's knee and stands up.

"Either of you." He says quietly before leaving.

0.0.0

After years of waiting for that word, I never would have thought that it would come from David Karofsky, but now that it has, I love that it did.

I'm still pretty terrified of whatever he feels for me and I can no longer delude myself into thinking that it's one sided, but I'm not ready. If or when David and I get together, it's going to be intense, I know it, so I have to be over Blaine first.

0.0.0

I'm not sure what to say or if I should say anything at all.

I get up, grab Kurt's phone off the ground and hand it to him. As he takes it, I kneel in front of him and take his free hand in both of mine. He's already considered being in a relationship with me, so maybe he's more ready to hear my side than I thought. I don't want him to push me away though.

Looking up at him, I can tell this is the moment. He needs to know how much he's wanted.

"I will always be your friend." I say as I look down at his hands to avoid his piercing gaze for a moment.

"I will always be here for you, no matter what you need or what we've been through. I want you to always be able to trust me and vice versa. But I also need to make it very clear, right now, what I want." I look up at him and he's smiling at me knowingly. It gives me courage to continue.

"You," I pause to make sure he's understood.

"When you're ready. When you're whole and healed and the boy that I fell in love with three years ago, I want to be with you." That last bit caught him off guard, I can tell from the way his grip loosened for just a second.

"There's no pressure. You getting better comes first, always. But, if after everything, you want to be with me too, that would make me the happiest guy in whole world." I'm trying really hard not to cry. I want to stay strong in his eyes, at least for a bit longer. He squeezes my hand and drops his phone on the chair beside him so he can hold both of mine.

"I-. David, you know-." He's adorable when he's flustered.

"I think I want that too." He whispers. I can't help myself. I drop his hands, scoop him up out of the chair and twirl him around once. As I place him down on the ground, I kiss his cheek.

"I don't know how long, I don't want you to feel obligated." He's trying to say something stupid, I can tell.

"Kurt," I say and he stops floundering. I pull his chin up so that I can see his eyes. He looks so scared.

"I've never wanted _anything_ as much as I want you." I say as I rub my thumb over his cheek, which makes him blush.

"I think it's safe to say I'll be here, no matter how long it takes. I don't want anybody else." I shrug and his smile could light up this whole town.

"I really do care about you, David. I don't want to hurt you. I-I'm obviously never going back to Blaine, but he still holds a very large part of my heart and who I am. I know I'll be over him eventually, I know I can move on, but I may never be that kid again. The one that you f-fell in love with." His face gradually gets darker through his whole speech. Every word making him dimmer.

"Maybe I should have worded that better." I sit him back down in the chair and stoop back down in front of him, so that we're eye level.

"It would be crazy to think that an experience like this wouldn't change you. I know you're not sixteen anymore and I know we're both going to change even more over time, but I'm always going to love you. When I said that, I meant the attitude you used to have. It comes from absolutely not caring what other people think of you and having the balls to be different. That is still completely you. I think it will always be you. You just need to be reminded that you are wonderful and beautiful and sexy." I punctuated each of those last words with a kiss to his hand.

"Once you believe that again, I know you'll be fine." He's looking back at me in disbelief. I want to surprise him every day. I want to give him one more reason to believe in himself every time I see him. And I think he can see that now.

"God, David, where did this come from? How do you know exactly what I need to hear? How do you know me so well, when we've only spent a week together in the last two years? I-I just don't understand how this could be real or how I could ever possibly deserve you."

"No, Kurt, I know it's strange for you to, uh, be around someone who's actually taken the time to understand you, but that is what you deserve. I can't tell you how much I want to beat the shit out of _him_ for ever making you doubt that." He's surprised, but I can tell he's also impressed and intrigued.

We sit in a moment of comfortable silence while I let him digest everything.

"So," Kurt breaks the silence.

"Let's assume that we do end up together before the summer is out. What about when we leave for school?" My heart expands in my chest at the thought.

"Well, we'll only be about four hours away from each other. I'm not saying it'll be easy, but I'll do everything I can to make it work. We could take turns making the drive." I couldn't shake the feeling that we were getting a little ahead of ourselves. We still had some work to do.

"But let's not worry about that right now. I know you want to work out all the what if's, but I think we should focus on getting you back to the Kurt Hummel we all know and love. I want you to be happy. That's all. So, don't ever be afraid to be honest with me. If it turns out that I'm not what you want, just tell me, okay?" The look in his eyes surprises me. I wouldn't call it predatory, but its close.

"Now that I know what my options are, I don't think that is going to be our problem. I-I've been, um, attracted to you since the very first day you came to the shop. Very attracted. And now you're not only gorgeous, but amazing. I feel more like myself right now, even after that horrible talk with Blaine, than I have in months. So, I have no doubt that we'll be together eventually. Our problem will be keeping our hands off each other in the mean time." His seductive smile catches me off guard. This is not a part of Kurt Hummel that I'm familiar with, but, God would I like to be. I honestly don't know what to say or how to respond to his flirting.

"Kurt, you can't just say shit like that." I'm getting a bit frustrated. His eyes get really wide and he blushes again, beat red.

"Are you okay?" I don't think I've ever seen him that red.

"Yeah, I don't think you're ready for quite that much sharing and I wouldn't want to give you the wrong idea."

"Try me." I say, deciding that nothing too bad could go down in his dad's office.

His eyes get wide again and he considers his words very carefully.

"Do you remember when you used to call me Fancy?" He pulls me up off my knees and pushes me towards the other chair.

"Yeah, of course. You know I never meant it to be mean. It was more a term of endearment than anything else. At least, it was in my fucked up, frightened little brain."

"I think I figured that out eventually. It's weird how you remember things without realizing it and where they pop up." He's getting a little embarrassed and I'm not sure why. So far, there's nothing dirty about this.

"I-I had a dream where you called me Fancy." He says like it's a huge confession.

"Okay. I can call you that if you want me to." I shrug, more than a little confused.

"It was-. We were, um, in a decidedly compromising situation." He admits shakily and points to the desk. "There."

My brain can't handle all this today. I started the day thinking that Kurt hated me. That he was mad at me or that he decided he didn't want to try to be friends anymore. All kinds of shit. Now, not only has Kurt considered a relationship with me, but he's been dreaming about _me_ too. Sexy, compromising dreams on his dad's desk. Damn that's hot.

"Wow." Is all I can manage at first.

"I-I dream about you too, nearly every day. They're not always like _that_. Sometimes we're traveling and sometimes I'm sitting in the audience at one of your shows." I'm suddenly very happy for Kurt's foresight to have me move.

"Others though, make it a little difficult to look you in the eye the day after without-" It feels weird to actually be able to voice even a small part of my long hidden desires.

"I never let myself hope that you would react this way." I say, trying to relieve the tension fused air. We haven't looked at each other properly since he confessed about his dreams.

"It was much easier to assume you'd never see me that way."

I can't believe it when Kurt reaches across the space between us and laces our fingers together.

"Well, I do."

0.0.0

It's not the first time I've been in a movie theater with David, but this time feels different. Everything between us feels different now, but there's a special kind of energy around us as we sit in the dark, nearly deserted theater waiting for the movie to start.

My dad eyed us warily as we left. We still haven't convinced him that nothing's going on between us, but that's probably because we haven't convinced ourselves.

It felt so nice to just hold his hand, to have that innocent kind of connection with someone again. It's strange. David has gone to all the these lengths to protect me and make sure I have time to heal, but I feel like I healed more while he spoke his mind and let me know how he felt than any other time.

To hear someone, especially David, tell me that I'm beautiful and worth something and that he wants to be with me. I think it put a piece of me back in place, a piece that I thought might always belong to Blaine and that I'd already mourned for.

It felt like I might be ready a lot sooner than I thought possible, especially after this morning.

I know David thought I was kidding when I said that it would be hard to stay away from each other, but I wasn't. He might have inhuman control over himself, but I don't. I'm also in a very needy place. I know it would be very easy for David, if he weren't such a gentleman, to take advantage of that.

Before, it would have been using him. It would have put him at risk of being my rebound fuck buddy, but David could never be that for me now. I do want to do this right. I don't want, what could be the very best thing to ever happen to me, to start off shallowly.

But I'm starting to think that no matter how things play out, nothing about David or our relationship will ever be shallow.

0.0.0

_Kurt, naked and spread out before me, is the most amazing thing I have ever seen. I love the jut of his hip bones and the curve of his neck. His thighs are muscular, but lithe just like his arms. He's beautiful. I don't know where to start._

"_Come on, David. I want you inside me." I groan loudly and lie beside him on my bed._

_Running my hands over the curves of his waist and over his stomach, I lick my way up his chest. He's soft everywhere and I can't get enough of the sound he makes when my tongue brushes his sensitive nipple. _

_I move my way down, sucking a bright red mark onto his left hipbone. He lets out a soft cry the first time my hand touches his cock. It's even softer than the rest of him and I can't even imagine how it would feel in my mouth. _

_I lick him from root to tip, torturously slow, and only take his tip in my mouth when I hear him moan._

"_Please, baby,"_

_I suck and lick just the head, trying to get a feel for what he likes and how he tastes. He's really sweet, but still so manly. He responds more to licks than sucks, so I build up a rhythm with my tongue swirling quickly around him, but still moving up and down gradually. _

_I always thought Kurt would be a very vocal lover, bossy even, but he's been pretty quiet thus far. No high pitched moaning or wild confessions of love, unfortunately. I know I've done something right when I feel his hands in my hair._

"_Just a bit faster. Uh, yeah,"_

_I abandon my tongue movements and focus on speed, swallowing him down farther in to my throat. _

"_Oh, David, if you don't stop now, I-I'll come." _

_I battle with myself a bit as to whether or not I'll let him. I decide I want to be inside him when we come together for the first time. _

_He groans in disappointment as I pull off of him, but he changes his tone quickly as I reach over him to my bottom dresser drawer. I pull out the well used tube of lube and my "wishful thinking" condoms. _

_As I drop them on the bed next to us, I look at Kurt._

"_You're sure?"I ask for what has to be the tenth time since we entered my room._

"_Yes, David, please. Just fuck me." I'm a little taken back by how desperate he sounds. I kind of like it though. I like how he looks at me like he's never seen anything sexier. And how he thrusts his hips up so that our erections rub together, as if to make a point._

"_I won't fuck you, Kurt." I whisper in his ear, holding myself over him._

_He doesn't even try to hide his disappointment._

"_I will make love to you though. That's what this will always be. No matter how rough or dirty it gets, that's what it will always be to me."_

_I can feel the energy between us shift. I feel him wrap his arms around my neck and his legs around my waist. _

"_Yes," he whispers back in my ear._

_Our lips meet in a kiss halfway between love and desperation. We've both waited so long for this, but I can't stop myself from biting his lip lightly and sweeping my tongue over the very tip of his._

"_Now, please," he says into the kiss. I break away from him and grab the lube. He takes it out of my hand and opens it, pouring a decent amount out into the palm of his hand. He throws the bottle back onto the bed and dips his fingers into the small pool. I can't believe that I could be more turned on, but I get even harder as he rubs his lubed hand over my two fingers. After he's sure they're good and covered, he reaches down and starts to stroke me, spreading what's left over in his palm evenly over my cock. I shudder a bit as he twists his hand over the tip before pulling away._

_He grabs one of the pillows beside him and carefully situates it under his hips. _

_I thought he was beautiful before, but this, this is too much. _

_He spreads his legs completely and I can see all of him. His slender, but long cock. His shaved, delicious looking balls. And last but not least his small, pink pucker._

_I groan at the thought of it surrounding me and reach forward to circle it with one lubed finger._

_His breath hitches as I push my finger in slowly, giving him plenty of time to adjust. _

_Once I'm in up to my second knuckle, I start to thrust my finger shallowly, gradually moving deeper._

_I crook my finger a few times, in different directions, trying to mind that little nub. I know I've found it when he screams for the first time._

"_Fuck, Dave."_

_I slip in my second finger just as slowly as the first, trying to hit his prostate on every other stroke._

_Very soon he's writhing and thrusting up to meet my fingers, a thin layer of sweat across his brow. _

_I scissor my fingers for a moment just for good measure and withdraw them. He definitely whimpers as they leave him._

_I hitch his legs over my shoulders and line myself up._

"_I love you," I say just before I push in slowly. It's so hot and tight._

"_Uh, I love you too," he does look uncomfortable at first, so I pause after every thrust, giving him time to adjust until I'm fully inside him. It's so hard not to lose control._

"_Please move," he says after a moment._

_I draw back fully and keep to shallow thrusts at first, still giving him time to open up a bit. It's not until I feel him meet my body for the first time that I let myself begin to let go._

"_K-Kurt,"_

_I rub my hands up and down his creamy thighs and speed up, trying a different angle every other thrust until I hear the tell tale scream._

"_Yes, right there."_

_I stop for just a moment to gather his legs up higher onto my shoulders and drive into him, loving how his finger nails feel down my chest._

"_David, uh, yes."_

"_David."_

"David."

My eyes fly open and I look up into Kurt's eyes.

"Hi," I say weakly. Oh my god, I hope he doesn't know what I was just dreaming.

"The movie's over. I can't believe you fell asleep." He's walking down the aisle, giving me a wonderful view of the ass that I was just inside. At least, in my head, and I can't hold in a groan.

"Yeah, me either. How was the end?"

He turns around quickly, a wicked smile on his face.

"Eventful." I've never seen a smirk look so sexy. He knows. He has to know. Shit.

"Kurt, I-"

"It's ok. I understand. Trust me, I do. It was actually kind of hot to watch you."

Fuck. Me.

"But-"

Kurt looks around quickly at the empty theater. Deciding that the coast is clear, he sits in my lap with both of his legs one side and his right arm slung over my shoulder.

"Really. I think as long as you keep being honest with me, I'll be ready much sooner than either of us thought."

He leans down and I can feel his breath on my ear.

"I like that you dream about me. Y-you're everything I've always wanted, everything I thought I'd never find all in one person. I can't wait to kiss you." He lifts his head again and starts to get up.

I pull him back down and put my hand on his cheek.

"The first time we kiss, because that's what I'll consider it, you have to be the one to initiate it. I never want to see that fear in your eyes again."

He cups his hand over mine still on his cheek.

"You never will."

He says as he closes his eyes and starts to move towards me. I blink a few times, thinking that this can't really be happening, but close my eyes as Kurt's lips brush mine tentatively.

Neither of us attempt to deepen the kiss. Kurt's soft lips merely move slowly against mine and I cup his cheek a bit tighter.

I see this kiss for what it is.

It's not an invitation, it's a promise.

I kiss him lightly, once more, as he pulls away.

"Thank you." I whisper.

It's very clear to me now that Kurt's friendship has helped me as much as mine has helped him. With this kiss and all of the possibilities that come with it, I can find forgiveness.

The last barrier of self-loathing and doubt that have kept me from accepting Kurt's forgiveness are gone.

I can move on and be the man that Kurt needs me to be now.

**A/N:** This chapter just would not end. Oh my god. A lot of you wanted a dream from David's point of view, so I hope you enjoyed that. Almost there guys. Kurt just needs one more wake up call and our boys will finally get their shit together. Yay!

Lots of David in this chapter. I promise there will be plenty of Kurt coming up. It just felt right to right this from David's point of view.

All of you Baul fans, I swear you are not forgotten. I think they'll be making a come back next chapter : )

Thank you all for reading and reviewing!

Alto


	9. Chapter 9

There's a new level of tension between David and I as I drive us back to the shop to get his truck. We're stuck in limbo; much closer than friends, but not really anything else yet either. Especially now that we've kissed, it's particularly confusing.

I hadn't planned on kissing him, but that moment felt right. He looked so vulnerable, so open. Not to mention his absolutely heart breaking, perfect words.

The words weren't the only things that were perfect either. The _kiss_, while chaste and small, was also perfect. Fear was the absolute last thing on my mind as my lips brushed against David's. They were a bit softer than in my dream.

Oh, and his dream. Never, have I ever been more turned on. Hearing him whisper my name while looking so completely wrecked and knowing how easy it would be to just give in and climb on top of him.

The _need_ that shot through me as I watched his hips twitch, knowing what he was doing to me in his dream, was blinding. When I woke him up, I tried to play it cool, like the situation was only mildly amusing and not ridiculously sexy. I think I pulled it off, but there was still something so repentant in his eyes, like he'd wronged me somehow. I knew I had to put his mind at ease and then the chemistry, the undeniable pull between us, took over.

And now, I'm not really ready to let that moment go. It feels like it should be acknowledged somehow.

I look over at David sitting completely still in my passenger seat. I can't tell how he feels about this progression in our relationship. All I know is that he's been strangely quiet ever since we walked out of the theater.

What could we do that would be small enough to keep things casual, but important enough to both of us that we understand where this is heading?

"Oh, would you like to get a pretzel with me?"

As soon as I say it, David is grinning.

"Of course."

He looks over at me with those big green eyes and, all of a sudden, I know. There's no point fighting it or hiding it. What that smile does to me, the thrill that it sends shooting all over my body, tells me I'm ready. Especially after that kiss, I know this is what I want; what I need. We can work through whatever residual "Blaine" issues I might have together, but it feels like my world just shifted. Blaine is officially a part of my past. My future now belongs to David, whichever part of it he wants.

Now I just have to tell him. Going over all the possible reactions and scenarios, I know I want to make this special. He's done so much for me and he deserves to feel just as wanted as I do now.

He's a details kind of guy. The more thought I put in to it, the better. Maybe I should take a day or two and plan something romantic, something truly meaningful.

I haven't missed the way that he stares at me when I sing. I don't do it very often and never loud enough for anyone to hear properly, but his eyes light up when he catches a few notes. That gives me the perfect idea.

0.0.0

The food court is much busier than the last time Kurt and I were here. The line at the pretzel place is pretty long.

"Why don't you go find us a table and I'll get our food."

Kurt nods at me and makes his way through the growing throng of people. When he's out of sight, I finally take a deep breath. My mind has been racing, a mile a minute, ever since I got into Kurt's car. I can't stop thinking about what this means for my life, for my future.

Talking to Kurt in the abstract about what we might be like together is one thing, but feeling like he's actually going to be mine one day is both exhilarating and terrifying.

"Excuse me," I hear from behind me.

I turn around and see a very attractive, blond guy standing there. He's much shorter than Kurt, but has a similar build. I feel him asses me and I cringe.

"Um, was that your boyfriend?" His voice is lower than I expected, but still a bit higher than mine. How does he even fit his junk in jeans that tight without sounding like a chipmunk? I tear my eyes away from his pants and finally register the question he just asked.

"N-no." I manage to stutter out. I should elaborate, but how do I explain the messed up state of my relationship with Kurt to an obviously interested stranger? I probably should have just said yes.

"Oh," There's definite excitement in his expression.

"Well," He shifts his weight from side to side and averts his light green eyes away from mine.

"Would you like to sit with me, then?"

I'm about to politely decline when I feel fingers thread through mine, squeezing my right hand much harder than necessary.

"No, he wouldn't." Kurt says coldly without even looking at me. I turn to study his face. He's leveling the poor kid with a full force Kurt Hummel glare. Even I would be scared shitless.

"But, I thought-" He looks at our hands and then back up at me questioningly, obviously assuming I'm a liar and a cheater.

"I don't care what you _thought_, the answer is still no." I try to pull my hand away from Kurt's as the guy's face falls and he books it out of the line.

I finally get my hand free and walk towards the entrance to the food court, trying to keep my cool. I can hear Kurt following me. I turn around abruptly and try to convey to Kurt how disappointed I am without saying it out loud, but he's wearing that stubborn frown that he thinks always gets him his way.

"God, Kurt, you didn't have to be such a bitch. I was handling it." As hot as Kurt's jealousy was, that kid didn't deserve his harshness.

Kurt looks like I just slapped him and it's strangely gratifying to watch that frown disappear. He stares at me in silence for a beat. He probably never expected me to stand up to him like that; very few people do. It's probably time that changed.

"Look, I accept you for exactly who you are. You are one of the most passionate, giving people I've ever met, but sometimes you say things without thinking. I'm not the kind of person to let shit like that slide. If this thing between us is ever going to work, you have to know that we _will _fight and I won't back down just to make you happy."

I pull him to me, wrapping my arms around his slender waist, and brush my lips across the shell of his ear.

"But I promise that the make-up sex will be worth it." I feel him smile into my shoulder. I have no idea where that confidence came from. Yes, in my dreams, I'm a monster in the sack, but that's not reality. Reality is that I just got my first kiss today. Yeah, technically it was my second, but I don't give a shit. What happened in that theater today was beautiful and warranted and _consensual. _

So, no matter how many times I've dreamt of rocking Kurt's world, I can only hope that reality will live up to that expectation. For now, it was worth a little exaggeration to break the tension.

"I guess," Kurt starts and pulls back a bit.

"I was a little hasty and maybe, just slightly, mean." I know that's as good as it's going to get for now.

"Just _possibly,_" I tease. He rolls his eyes at me and tries to pull away, but my hold on his waist only tightens.

"I should have just told him you were my boyfriend and avoided it all together, but I was too surprised to think it through." In this moment, with Kurt in my arms, it kind of feels like it would have been a true statement.

"What about that surprised you? That guy was quite obviously gay." I pull him even closer, so that our chests are flush against each other. The heat of his body relaxes me in a completely foreign way.

"It always catches me off guard when guys flirt with me." I shrug my shoulders and run my hands up and down Kurt's back, loving the way he shivers under them.

"I guess it's still strange to me when people find me attractive." Kurt looks scandalized.

"Have I not yet explained in enough detail how amazingly hot you are? It shouldn't surprise you." He lifts his mouth to my ear and whispers.

"You- you're shoulders drive me crazy. I want to dig my finger nails into them and just lose myself." If the breath on my ear didn't get me going, the image that those words inspired sure did. I groan and place a small kiss on his neck.

This feels a lot like one of my dreams.

"Your eyes are the most beautiful shade of green I've ever seen and ,mmm, your mouth is so damn distracting. I want to taste it all the time."

But this is real. Kurt really is in my arms. It reminds me of Kurt's confession about his dream and I decide to play a little dirty.

"F-fancy," I feel his breath hitch and I smile.

"Unless you want all these innocent people to witness _exactly_ what I'd like to do with my mouth right now, you'll step back and walk calmly with me back to your car."

He looks up at me, trying to gauge how serious I am. He finds whatever he's looking for because he does exactly what I ask and heads back towards the parking lot.

0.0.0

When Kurt gets home from the movies and runs right past me to his room, smiling like an idiot, my curiosity is peaked. So, I walk up the stairs and knock on his door. He opens it after a second and doesn't even give me a chance to speak.

"I can't talk right now Dad, I have to practice."

Before I can say anything, he closes the door in my face. If he hadn't looked so happy, I would have been angry, but there's something about the mood he's in that makes me let it go.

I stand in front of the door for a minute. He said he had to practice, but he hasn't sung outright in so long. I want to know what's got him so inspired. And rude.

I hear an opening chord, something soft. I can't make out every word of the first verse, but what I do hear, pisses me off. It's obviously about Blaine. I swear I could punch that kid in his smug little face after what he's done to Kurt. I'm not quite sure what it is, but I don't have to know. I just have to see the shell that used to be kid to know that this is all his fault.

As the chorus starts, I get back a bit of hope. Maybe this isn't a step backward after all. In fact, the more I listen, the more it sounds like a running leap forward. I smile despite myself.

Yes, I just warned him earlier today that he wasn't ready, but the tone of this song, the way it's worded, makes me think that maybe he is. Especially if it's Dave he's singing to. That kid is a god send. I'm not sure what I would have done without him or what state Kurt might still be in.

I walk away from the door as the song ends, feeling much better about my eavesdropping. I have to call Paul.

I grab my cell off the coffee table once I'm downstairs and hit nine.

"Hey, Burt, how's it going?" He answers.

"I think it's going good. I-I think it worked. Kurt is in his room singing!" I can't hide how excited I am.

"That's great! Dave just got home and I almost asked him if he was high. He was off in some other world, smiling like a loon."

"I can't believe how well this worked out."

"I know. Dave won't stop talking about Kurt or you. Sometimes I get a little jealous. He thinks you're the coolest guy ever."

"Sorry, man. I've been teaching him a bit down at the garage. He's a smart kid. I have to say, I hope everything works out for them. I can't think of a better guy for Kurt."

I realize I've just gotten a bit heavy, but it's true. At first, I just wanted Kurt to feel better, to have a friend he would feel comfortable talking to. Now that I've gotten to know Dave, though, it's obvious to me how perfect he is for my son.

"Thanks, Burt. That means a lot, knowing how protective you are of him."

"Yeah, well, let's not get too mushy. I'm not positive that they're together yet. Kurt promised I would be the first to know and he didn't say anything outright. We'll just have to wait it out."

"Yeah, hey, you wanna come over for the Indians game?"

"Sure. Carole has to work tonight, so I'm free. I'll bring the beer."

"Alright. See you round seven."

"See you then."

0.0.0

I'm so glad we have Sundays off. I might have to avoid David for the day, but it will be worth it. I have so much to do. I have to practice, call in a few favors, and figure out what I'm going to wear.

Around noon, I get the first text.

**David K:** Hey. I understand if you're sick of me, but do you wanna go to the park? I'm feeling a walk.

Ah, how sweet.

**Kurt: **I'm sorry. Promised my dad we'd spend some time together. For some reason he feels like we never see each other. Lol.

I feel a little bad for lying, and for not actually spending this time with my dad. I really have been neglecting him a bit.

**David K:** That's cool. I should probably hang with my dad too.

As I close the text message, I scroll to a number I haven't used in a very long time.

0.0.0

Seeing David on Monday morning almost made me scrap my plan and just attack him. Sunday was the first day we'd spent completely apart since we started working together. I hadn't thought about how much I would miss him when I put this whole thing together.

"Hi," I say breathlessly as he walks into the office.

I see my dad shake his head and quickly walk out of the room.

"Hi," David says back. He sounds just as affected as I am.

"It's probably best that we try to keep our distance at work. I'm not sure I could-"

"Yeah, me either."

I shift my weight a bit, not sure how to broach the subject that would kick start my plan.

"Can we – Could I take you somewhere after work?" I curse my nerves for making me stumble.

"Should I even try to ask where?" His smirk makes my stomach flip.

"It would be futile." I nod my head, like a dork.

The rest of the day passes by pretty quickly. David and I circle around each other, apologizing too much and generally making everyone uncomfortable.

Thankfully, finally, four o'clock arrives and my dad cheerily kicks out of the shop.

"Please fix this." He whispers in my ear as we leave.

"Working on it." I answer back before heading to my car. David grabs a few things out of his truck and meets me there.

"Okay," I open my door and gesture that the door is unlocked. Once we're both in, I turn to look at him.

"Do you trust me?"

"Yes." He says without missing a beat.

I pull a black silk scarf out of my bag and hand it to him.

"Please, please be careful with her. Cover your eyes. I want no peaking and I _will _know if you do."

He wraps the scarf around his head wearily. He honestly doesn't look scared at all, just insanely curious.

"Don't worry, I promise you'll enjoy this." He snickers and I realize how this might look to him.

"I don't doubt that, _Fancy. _You can blind fold me anytime."

I know, I just know, that if his eyes weren't covered, he would winking at me. My nerves cannot handle that image or his flirting, so I start the car and try not to think about what I'm about to do too much.

It's not that I don't believe in my voice. I know I can sing. It's what I'm singing and who I'm singing it to that has me spazzing out.

Right as I'm about to pull out of the garage parking lot, I feel David's hand searching over my leg and up onto the steering wheel. He grabs my right hand and threads our fingers together.

"Breathe, Kurt. Whatever you have planned, I know I'll love it and I know you'll be amazing."

I let out a dramatic breath and squeeze his hand.

"Thank you. I really needed to hear that."

I finally pull my navigator out of the parking lot. I'm still pretty jittery, but feeling a bit more confident.

0.0.0

Kurt told me not to peak, and I won't, but I really want to.

No one has ever done anything like this for me before. Of course, I'm not sure what this is yet, but Kurt has obviously put a lot of thought into it.

After about a ten minute drive, Kurt pulls into a parking lot on the left side and stops the car. I hear him open his door and I grope for the handle on mine.

My door opens before I can find it and I feel Kurt's hand grab mine as he helps me step out.

I'm lead through some grass and onto a sidewalk. There's what sounds like a pair of double doors and the smell of bleach. Suddenly, Kurt steers me into an uncomfortable chair.

"Okay, keep the blindfold on for just a few more minutes. I have to go grab something."

I'm really tempted to take a peak while he's gone, but I want to feel the full effect of whatever he has planned.

Before I know it, I hear Kurt come back in through a door on the right.

"Okay, you can take it off."

I carefully untie the scarf and open my eyes.

I see the lockers before I can register anything else.

We're in a hall at McKinley. In fact, if I'm not mistaken, we're right in front of Kurt's old locker.

Next thing I notice is the Baldwin sitting right in front of me. How I missed it before, I have no idea. Kurt is standing in front of it, looking very nervous.

"I know this might be a little weird, but I couldn't think of a better place to sing you this song. I was hoping that if we had a positive experience a long side all of those negative ones, it might help you let go a bit and forgive yourself." He smiles at me sadly and walks around the piano.

He sits there for just a minute and collects himself. I can tell he's nervous.

"I love your voice. You have nothing to be nervous about." His smile brightens and he takes one big breath before he plays the first chord. I don't recognize it. It's slow, but hopeful.

_He and I had something beautiful  
>But so dysfunctional, it couldn't last<br>I loved him so but I let him go  
>'Cause I knew he'd never love me back<em>

I had not prepared myself for this. He was going to sing to me about _Blaine?_

Such pain as this  
>Shouldn't have to be experienced<br>I'm still reeling from the loss,  
>Still a little bit delirious,<p>

_Yeah._

Near to you, I am healing  
>But it's taking so long<br>'Cause though he's gone  
>And you are wonderful<br>It's hard to move on  
>Yet, I'm better near to you.<p>

Kurt looks up at me for the first time and I see the tears threatening to fall from his eyes. I feel his heartache all the way down to my bones. His voice wrings emotion out of every word. 

You and I have something different  
>And I'm enjoying it cautiously<br>I'm battle scarred, I am working oh so hard  
>To get back to who I used to be.<p>

_He's disappearing  
>Fading steadily.<br>I'm so close to being yours  
>Won't you stay with me<br>Please_

His voice cracks on 'Please' and I almost want to stop him. Fuck this beautiful song and all the time I'm sure he spent making it so perfect. I have to hold him and reassure him that I'm not going anywhere, but the chorus starts back again and I think it's my favorite part.

_Near to you, I am healing  
>But it's taking so long<br>'Cause though he's gone  
>And you are wonderful<br>It's hard to move on  
>Yet, I'm better near to you. <em>

_Yet, I'm better near to you._

There's a shift in the mood of the chords and I get a bit nervous. As perfect as this song is for us, I'm a little scared about how it ends.

I only know that I am  
>Better where you are<br>I only know that I am  
>Better where you are<br>I only know that I belong  
>Where you are<p>

His voice is haunting, but still absolutely beautiful and clear. I almost miss the words to the last part because I'm so caught up in the power of his voice. It literally sends a shiver down my spine when my brain lets me acknowledge the word 'belong'. Kurt thinks he belongs with me?

Near to you, I am healing  
>But it's taking so long<br>Though he's gone  
>And you are wonderful<br>It's hard to move on

Near to you, I am healing  
>But it's taking so long<br>'Cause though he's gone  
>And you are wonderful<br>It's hard to move on  
>Yet, I'm better near to you.<p>

Yet, I'm better near to you.

I'm already up out of my chair before he finishes the last few notes.

Once I'm there, sitting next to him, I don't know whether to kiss him or wipe the tears from his cheeks, or just hold him until he stops crying.

I place my hand on his right cheek and gently rub the tears away with my thumb. His eyes are pleading with me. I don't know what he wants from me, but I can't hold back anymore. That was the most beautiful thing I've ever heard or seen.

"I love you," I whisper before claiming his mouth.

It's nothing like our kiss in the theater.

Our lips are working fast against one another, tongues sliding gently, insistently. I'm not sure how, but Kurt ends up straddling my lap and throwing his arms around my neck to bring me in deeper. Our chests collide and the combined feeling of Kurt's mouth and hips is so overwhelming, I have to stop.

I pull back slowly, placing one last kiss to Kurt's closed lips.

"I'm so close." Kurt whispers. He rubs his hand down my cheek and over my jaw.

"I'm so very close to loving you. I want to be with you. I don't think there's any going back from this." He gestures to our intimate position.

I nod, not sure if I trust myself to talk just yet.

I hold him for a few minutes, neither of us really wanting to move. Slowly, I remember where we are and what I'm sitting on. I pull back reluctantly and allow him to remove himself from my lap.

"How did you do this?"

He closes the lid over the keys of the piano and leans against it.

"Mr. Schuester. He's down the hall, in his office. He moved the piano for me and made sure the side doors were unlocked."

I pull him so he's standing in front of me.

"I can't believe you did this for me. No one's ever-. Well, I've never had anyone to do something like this. You're so talented, Kurt. I don't know what you want from someone like me." Kurt plops back down in to my lap and kisses me softly.

"You've already given me what I want. Well, most of what I want." He wiggles his eyebrows at me suggestively and I can feel myself blush. All the possibilities, all the things I told myself I could never have, are playing over in my head as I take in his sparkling eyes.

"Don't worry. We'll get there." I look down, not sure if I want to push. Kurt said he wanted to be with me, but I already knew that.

"So, does this mean?" I look back up at him and he has that pleading look in his eyes again, but I understand it this time.

I pull him closer and nudge his leg so that he's straddling me again. I love how well he fits there against me. I grab both of his hands and bring them to my lips.

"Kurt, will you be my boyfriend?"

He nods his head frantically and brings his lips back down to mine.

This kiss is smooth, languid, but still so passionate. The way his lips move gracefully, lovingly against mine, makes my heart soar.

I let Kurt control this kiss. I let him show me exactly how he feels, everything he can't quite put into words yet.

We continue to kiss until a laugh from down the hall interrupts us.

"Sorry to break this up, guys, but I have to move the piano back before I leave."

Will Schuester hasn't changed much since the last time I saw him, well except the wedding band.

"Looks like everything went well, Kurt. I'm glad. You both deserve to be happy after all the crap you've gone through." I can tell the second he realizes that we put each other through most of that crap. He's about to backpedal, but I decide to save him the embarrassment.

"Thanks, . Looks like you found some happiness for yourself too." I gesture to his hand. He smiles wide and nods.

"Yeah, Emma and I got married over Winter break."

"Well, congratulations." We shake hands and Kurt gets off of me reluctantly.

"Thanks for all your help, Mr. Schue." Kurt hugs him.

"Do you need any help getting the piano back to the choir room?" I ask. The thing looks heavy, wheels or no.

"No thanks, Dave. I got this. You go have fun. Enjoy the rest of your break." He places the bench on top of the piano and starts to wheel it, expertly, back down the hall.

Kurt grabs the chair and puts it back in a classroom while I grab his scarf off the floor before he can realize I dropped it at some point during his song. I dust it off and hand it to him when he comes back out. He grabs my hand and laces our fingers together.

It feels nice to finally do this as a proper couple.

"So, Fancy Boyfriend. What would you like to do now?" I use our entwined hands to spin him once as we walk. He looks surprised, but I can tell he liked it.

"Well, I did tell my dad that he would be the first to know when our "status" changed, so we should probably go do that."

Despite how much I know Kurt's dad likes me, I'm still quite scared of him. He's quietly terrifying. Even if Kurt's got him wrapped around his little finger, this might not go well.

He could accuse me of taking advantage of Kurt while he's emotionally unstable. Not that he's stupid enough to use those words exactly in front of Kurt, but something quite similar.

This had huge potential for failure, but, looking over at Kurt's flushed face and feeling the weight of his hand in mine, I know it'll be worth it.

"Okay. Do you have The Funeral March on your ipod? I think it would be appropriate for the drive over." Kurt smiles up at me and lets go of my hand. I wrap my arm around his waist and lean my chin against his shoulder.

"He loves you. In fact, I'll probably get more of a lecture than you will." He's shaking his head.

"Doubtful. Either way," I stop us right before the doors to the parking lot and pull him towards me. I kiss him softly, still finding it hard to believe that I get to do that whenever I want now. I pull away and stare deeply into his bright blue eyes.

"This has been the best day of my life. I love you."

His smile is almost as bright as his eyes and he squeezes me just a bit tighter.

Suddenly, I can't wait for the day that he says those words back to me. I know it's coming and I'm nothing, if not patient.

**A/N: **I don't usually put songs into my fics, but the words to that song were perfect. It's "Near to You", by A Fine Frenzy. I recommend you look it up because it is beautiful! Thank you to everyone who reviewed! I've been slacking on responding and I'm sorry! I promise I will soon, but between Tonsilitis and auditions (yes, at the same time) it's been crazy.

I told you all that Baul would be back soon : )

Thanks for reading!


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